Penny Chapman Movies
- 2002
The formative years of celebrated Australian feminist Jill Ker-Conway are recounted in the two-hour TV biopic The Road From Coorain. Growing up in the Outback of New South Wales in the 1930s, Jill chafes under the domination of her mother, Eve (Juliet Stevenson), a prickly relationship that becomes even more so after the death of Jill's father. Though she grows wealthy from various investments, Eve becomes a bitter alcoholic, all but forcing Jill to go out into the world and stand on her own two feet. Drawn into the Australian intellectual renaissance of the 1940s, Jill finds her feminist values challenged when she falls in love with rough-hewn American mining engineer, Alec (Tim Guinee). First telecast in Australia on March 3, 2002, The Road From Coorain was seen in America as an episode of the PBS anthology Masterpiece Theatre on May 13, of that same year. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Juliet Stevenson
- 1995
Celebrated Australian filmmaker Mike Jenkins helms this controversial, true-life tale of police corruption in New South Wales that was banned from airing in the state where the events occurred for six years due to ongoing legal proceedings. Decorated police officer Roger "The Dodger" Rogerson (Richard Roxburgh) was a shining example of law enforcement at its most commendable; until he made a deal with the devil, that is. When Rogerson enters into a deadly partnership with career criminal Arthur "Neddy" Smith (Tony Martin) that gives the violent psychopath free reign to run rampant through the Sydney underworld, the stage is set for tragedy as guns on both sides start blazing. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Richard Roxburgh, Tony Martin, (more)
- 1994
This Australian action movie is based on a popular Australian television series about the Sydney Police Rescue Squad. The squad comes to the big screen with the addition of Officer Lorrie Gordon, a former member of the Drug Squad. After her partner and secret lover was killed on duty, Ms. Gordon has been under the suspicious surveillance of Internal Affairs. Her partner it seems, had been corrupted. At first, Gordon is not welcomed into the rescue squad by Sgt. Mickey McClintock. Then he sleeps with her. She is suspended from the force. Later, during the film's climax, she becomes a civilian heroine when she rescues kindergartners and their teacher from a mad bomber. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Gary Sweet, Zoe Carides, (more)
- 1994
An American woman turns an Australian home upside down in this Australian picture. Dallas Adair came to Australia from L.A. as a golf course consultant. En route she meets Charlie Sommers, the son of one of her sponsors, Stephen Sommers. After their plane almost crashes, the two become friends. Dallas is invited to stay at the Sommers' home. There she meets the rest of the family Rosalind, frustrated wife of Stephen and Rastus, an intelligent teenager with a passionate belief in UFO's. Dallas immediately begins seducing every member in the family except Rastus, who despises Dallas. The sex scenes are more implied than explicit. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Sandra Bernhard, Victoria Longley, (more)
- 1993
Imagine, if you will, the plight of poor inner-city youths in crime and gang-ridden neighborhoods, combined with the problems that many native Americans experience off the reservation in terms of divided loyalties and separation from their culture and families. That is a pretty fair approximation of the situation many Australian Aborigine young people experience today in large cities. This stark drama is based on a book by Aborigine writer Archie Weller. Doug (John Moore) has already had some run-ins with the law, and is just getting out of prison. He wants to remain law-abiding, but the pull of his old family and friends (who are deeply embroiled in a life of crime) is very strong. When he is asked to help a friend pull off a robbery, he knows it's a bad idea but he goes along anyway, with tragic results. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- 1992
The two-part Australian miniseries Frankie's House was based on photojournalist Tim Page's autobiography Page After Page. Set during the Vietnam war, the story recounted the adventures of Page (Iain Glen) and his erstwhile photographer partner. After numerous scrapes with death, Page managed to survive to tell his tale, but his partner was not so lucky, disappearing without a trace during a 1970 foray into Laos. The program's title referred to a brothel frequented by the principal characters. The two 120-minute episodes of Frankie's House were broadcast by Australia's ABC network in 1992. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1991
Tapping into the Australian viewing public's ongoing fascination with aviators, this two-part miniseries dramatized the celebrated 1934 London-to-Melbourne MacPherson Robertson Air Race. American actor Barry Bostwick starred as entrepreneurial flyboy Roscoe Turner, who organized the race and invited such famous aviators as Amy Johnson (Caroline Goodall), Tom Campbell-Black (Robert Reynolds), Ray Parer (Gary Day), and Geoff Hemsworth (Jeff Truman). Although the script is topheavy with celebrity name-dropping, much of it is pure fiction -- except of course for the outcome of the race. Enhanced by the utilization of genuine vintage aircraft, Half a World Away originally aired in Australia in May 1991. It has since been released to video as The Great Air Race. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Barry Bostwick, Robert Reynolds, (more)
Australian filmmaker Ken Cameron directs the six-part television miniseries Brides of Christ, originally broadcast in 1991. The series involves a group of six women at an Australian convent school during the 1960s, a time of social turbulence and Vatican reforms. Sister Agnes (Brenda Fricker) leads the group of nuns with Mother Ambrose (Sandy Gore). The younger nuns include Sister Catherine (Josephine Byrnes) and Sister Paul (Lisa Hensley). Also at the convent are teenagers Frances Heffernan (Naomi Watts) and Rosemary Fitzgerald (Kym Wilson). Each of the six episodes focuses on one character. Russell Crowe appears in a small role. Brides of Christ premiered in the U.S. on A&E. ~ Andrea LeVasseur, All Movie Guide
- 1990
This film is based upon the true story of Mordechai Vanunu, an Israeli lab technician who left his job and country in protest of the nuclear arms project to which he'd been assigned. Going public, he hoped to deter the hellish mission and sway world opinion against those within his country responsible for the nuclear buildup. ~ All Movie Guide
- 1990
The three-part British-Australian TV production The Paper Man could be described as the miniseries equivalent of Citizen Kane. John Bach headed the huge cast as Philip Cromwell, a canny Australian entrepreneur who through "ways of his own" became his country's most powerful media mogul. Any resemblance between Cromwell and the real-life Rupert Murdoch was, of course, purely coincidental. Telecast in 1990, The Paper Man was seen in the United Kingdom via Granada Television, and in Australia over that continent's ABC network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- John Bach, Oliver Tobias, (more)
Blue Murder picks up steam when a homicide detective teams with a crime reporter. The mismatched pair search for a sex murderer. The killer's modus operandi includes painting "clown faces" on his victims. Jamie Spears and Terry Logan head the cast. Made for Canadian TV, Blue Murder was first seen below the border over the USA cable network. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- 1979
Australia was a powerhouse in world swimming competitions long before the U.S.'s Mark Spitz was a gleam in his father's eye. Foremost among these sports heroes was high-spirited Dawn Fraser, who won four gold medals at three Olympics (1956, '60 and '64). This clear-sighted biographical drama explores Fraser's life before, during and just after her competitive years. Fraser was forever getting herself into trouble, and she consistently rebelled against authority. Among the many dramatic events which marked her career, she was banned from Australian swimming for 10 years after stealing a flag during the Tokyo ('64) Olympics. The movie underscores her strong family ties and her attachment to Balmain, the working-class suburb of Sydney she grew up in, which makes her later career as a Member of Parliament for the area easier to understand. ~ Clarke Fountain, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Bronwyn MacKay-Payne, John Diedrich, (more)
